Personal best

Kiera Aitken, a two-time Olympian and former Dal Tiger, with Jingjing, one of the Olympic mascots.

For Kiera Aitken, putting on her new LZR Racer proved more stressful than standing on the starting block and getting ready for the biggest race of her life.

Developed with help by NASA, the sleek black Speedo swimsuits are so tight and form-fitting—the design has a built-in girdle—that you "actually have to take breaks when putting them on," says the former Dal Tiger with a laugh. "And remember to breathe too."

One of six athletes from Bermuda, the 24-year-old swimmer's specialty is the backstroke. The competition was fierce just to qualify for the Olympics, "so once I got (to Beijing), the pressure wasn't as intense … all I had to do was to do the best I could.

"I was totally pumped."

Wearing her new suit, the Dalhousie graduate ended up doing better than her best by a second and a half—amazing when you consider mere fractions of seconds separate the competitors.

While her time of 1:02.62 didn't get her to the finals of the 100-metre backstroke, she did win her heat and set a new Bermuda record. With her event over early on in the competition, she was free to spend her time at the Water Cube cheering on her friends, and at the Bird's Nest Stadium, where she saw Jamaican wonder Usain Bolt run heats for the 200-metre race. It was also fun hanging out in the athletes' village and checking out the basketball superstars like China's Yao Ming and the U.S.'s Kobe Bryant.

Kiera Aitken's specialty is the backstroke. While at Dalhousie, she set several records for the backstroke and free-style swimming. (Photo courtesy of Kiera Aitken)

"The Chinese people were so wonderful," she says. "They didn't know who I was, but they'd come up and ask for photographs and autographs."

Prior to the Olympics, Ms. Aitken has been living in Barcelona, Spain, training six days a week and learning Spanish. Having improved her time so dramatically in Beijing, she's looking forward to getting back in the pool. She also competed in the Olympics in Athens.

"I'm excited for the next year, since I shaved off so much time," says Ms. Aitken, back in Bermuda for two weeks before returning to Barcelona.

While studying computer science at Dalhousie, Ms. Aitken was a member of the Dal Tigers swim team. She holds the Dalhousie and AUS records for the 50-metre backstroke, 100-metre backstroke and 200-metre backstroke.

Her sister Ashley Aitken, who graduated earlier this year with a degree in kinesiology at Dalhousie, is also a strong swimmer and has the Dal record for the 50-metre butterfly. Ashley was the swim team's most valuable player in 2006-07.